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The year is 1327. Franciscans in a wealthy Italian abbey are suspected of heresy, and Brother William of Baskerville arrives to investigate.When his delicate mission is suddenly overshadowed by seven bizarre deaths, Brother William turns detective. He collects evidence, deciphers secret symbols and coded manuscripts, and digs into the eerie labyrinth of the abbey where extraordinary things are happening under the over of night. A spectacular popular and critical success, The Name of the Rose is not only a narrative of a murder investigation but an astonishing chronicle of the Middle Ages.

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"Whether you’re into Sherlock Holmes, Montaillou, Borges, the nouvelle critique, the Rule of St. Benedict, metaphysics, library design, or The Thing from the Crypt, you’ll love it. Who can that miss out?" (Sunday Times)

Book Description

The ground-breaking first novel from Umberto Eco – a murder mystery, an enthralling chronicle of the Middle Ages, a piece of biblical analysis and a stunning popular and critical success all at once.

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Brilliant, just as remembered, and very different and BETTER than the film. Among them are expected differences, like more time to explain, and more time to develop character, but also there are things that never happen in the film, and even complete 180 degree turns to key events. The book is a better more holistic and satisfying event than the film, but the film, seen as a film, stands well as a great piece of cinematography. just not a great version of the book. See the film, but read the book first, if you can. Umberto Eco is a master of deep and meaningful plots and story lines, and casually throws around languages like Latin, Greek, German, Italian and others, sometimes untranslated, which can be disorientating at times, but does definitely enhance the time difference and cultural gap between us and the period of the book in history. Brilliant all round.

I approached The Name of the Rose with some trepidation. It was a thick paperback, and it came with a reputation of being a challenging read… and a few pages in it became clear that the author had liberally scattered his text with what I am told is medieval Latin (I don’t know any kind of Latin except for phrases which have passed into common use like Veni, vidi, vici).

However, I decided I would tackle the challenge as I also knew it was a mystery novel and, in general, I enjoy mystery novels (unless they are too graphic).

The Name of the Rose is a mystery novel, but it is a medieval mystery novel, set in a monastery against a background of a theological debate, and I found that I was as caught up in trying to follow the religious arguments (and form my own opinion of them) as I was by solving ‘whodunit’? In fact, by about half way through the novel I was so caught up in the story that I forgot to look out for clues as to the murderer’s identity… which meant I had a big surprise at the end.

At the heart of the monastery, and at the centre of the novel, is the mysterious library – a labyrinth which can only be accessed by the librarian and his assistant. Like all forbidden or restricted things, curiosity drives others to long to penetrate the library’s secrets – unfolding a devastating chain of events.

The Name of the Rose is a novel about sincere monks grappling with what seem to them to be vital questions: Did Christ practice (and preach) a rule of poverty for Himself and His followers? What should the relationship be between the (Catholic) church, the Emperor, and the common people? And, perhaps most important of all, Did Christ ever laugh? While these may not be questions which are asked in modern religious circles, what struck me was how the monks holding differing views used their religious beliefs in order to support political arguments – a trend as old as the monasteries of the Middle Ages and as modern as the American Presidential elections.

The other theme in The Name of the Rose is about the importance of knowledge, and particularly the information stored in books, and about whether access to that learning should be free for all or restricted. Is all knowledge good, because it is knowledge, and should therefore be shared, or are there some things which it is better to keep a secret?

You don’t have to be religious to enjoy this book – although I think it adds an interesting dimension if you are – neither do you have to be an expert on medieval times. If you have the patience to grapple with complex events (while remembering that the precise details are perhaps, not vital to the story), and the desire to read a novel that elevates the basic ‘whodunit’ to an art form, then add The Name of the Rose to your reading list, and persevere until the end. You will not be disappointed (but you may wish to read it again, to see if there were clues you missed the first time around).

Eco takes you back in time to the early 14th century and a Europe in disarray as competing factions fight out whether or not Jesus owned the shirt on his back (sort of). The murder mystery that forms the backbone of this book is set in an imposing monestary high in the mountains, home to a treasury of literature and an increasing body count that the principle characters are tasked with sorting out.

In large part the writing is simply stunning. Utterly absorbing. But in many places, Eco indulges himself with rambling narratives that serve no great purpose. He seems to have a passion for reeling off long lists of almost anything which don't advance the story. An editor's cutting scissors would have been helpful.

The result is a book that is both utterly absorbing and difficult to get into. A paradox the author I'm sure would be content with.

This is a tough read, as the style is dense, and the dialogue peppered with Latin- it is set in a 12C monastery after all, and the majority of people there are learned monks.But, keep going. It's a fascinating and detailed book, full of twists and turns, as is the library at the centre of the who-dun-it. Was hugely talked about when first published, and I remember reading it ages ago, but it's been good to revisit.

I THINK I liked this novel, although I'm not 100% sure! I found it really difficult to read in places, and must admit that when the characters were going into incredibly long narratives about the history of their monastic order, or the history of the church in general in Italy, it was sometimes so incomprehensible (to me) that I was skipping sometimes up to six pages of this at a time, because for me it was holding up the story. It's a 'learned' book I think, and I'm sure I got something from it, not least of which was how vicious and blood-thirsty monks were in those days!

I was a little bit disappointed with this book considering the reviews I'd read which made me want to read it. It read like a philosophical Ken Follet meets Dostoyevsky feel to it. I had read 'Pillars Of The Earth' and 'World Without End', both set in medieval monasteries so I was expecting something similar and the thought of a friar trying to solve mysterious murders as well also appealed to me but the dialogue is too philosophical for me as the friar teaches his young protege in the ways of the world as well examining the characters of each monk but I got bogged down in a story that I felt dragged on

Complicated and laced together with medieval references, this is a brilliant voyage through the mind of a 15th century Hercule Poirot. The subject is unusual, which makes it all the more readable. One is almost convinced that this is genuine history being relate, rather than the work of a brilliant and convoluted mind. A film was made of this book, with Sean Connery in the leading role. The book tops even this.